Foreclosure and Loan Modification Blog (4)

Using Affirmative Defenses When Answering A Foreclosure Complaint

When your bank serves you with a foreclosure complaint for not paying your mortgage, you have a right to answer it and deny its charges, which you should.

You should also include something called affirmative defenses in your response to the complaint because they are a vital part of a good foreclosure defense strategy.

What Is An Affirmative Defense?

An affirmative defense in a civil lawsuit is a fact that defeats or mitigates the consequences of a charge. For example, in a foreclosure complaint the plaintiff will charge that you haven't been paying your mortgage and they're entitled to foreclose because of that. An affirmative defense wouldn't deny that (though the answer probably would), but it would basically say that it doesn't matter for some reason, like the plaintiff doesn't have the right to foreclose.

[fa icon="clock-o"] Tuesday, December 3, 2019 [fa icon="user"] Maxwell Swinney [fa icon="folder-open'] foreclosure, summons and complaint

We would like to apologize in advance for the possible delay in our response time while we prepare ourselves for the approach of Hurricane Dorian.

Our office will be closed on Monday for Labor Day, and office is tentatively open on Tuesday, September 3rd, but will be monitoring the hurricane closely and will keep you updated. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for news.

Clients: Please be advised that we have made arrangements for ALL upcoming hearings and urgent matters in the next two weeks. If our office loses power or our phone lines in the coming days you can always log in to your case.

[fa icon="clock-o"] Friday, August 30, 2019 [fa icon="user"] Jake Sterling [fa icon="folder-open'] hurricane

If you are in foreclosure in a judicial foreclosure state, your case can "go to trial."

Some homeowners think they want to go to trial to have their day in court, a chance to tell their story to a judge or jury and get justice. However, real life is not like an episode of a legal drama show. There will be no sensational surprise at the end, and probably not much of anything exciting. And even if you do win, you will not get a free house.

In many cases, it makes sense to avoid going to trial because it's better to come to an agreement with the lender before it gets to that point. But sometimes that's not practical, and a case does end up at trial.

The Worst Advice We've Heard About Loan Modifications and Foreclosure

If you tell people that you're trying to get a loan modification to avoid foreclosure and keep your home, inevitably some of them will offer advice, whether they know what they're talking about or not.

Acting on bad guidance for something so important can be harmful to your chances of getting the outcome you want.

Here's some of the worst advice we've heard about loan modifications and foreclosure:

"Stop paying your mortgage to get a loan mod"

Homeowners who are current on their mortgage have been told that they need to stop paying their mortgage to be eligible for a loan modification.

This is wrong.

You do need to show that you've had a hardship that's making it hard to afford your mortgage, but you do not have to be in default to get a loan modification.

[fa icon="clock-o"] Friday, April 19, 2019 [fa icon="user"] Jake Sterling [fa icon="folder-open'] loan modification, foreclosure

Disclaimer: These results should not be taken as a guarantee, as each case is unique. We have helped over 7,000 homeowners. Here are some of their stories.

Every week we obtain loan modifications for our clients with a variety of loan servicers. You can see these results as they are announced on Twitter (#loanmodwow) or Facebook. Here are some of our results from this week with Freedom, Seterus, Wells Fargo and SPS:

What's Taking So Long For Your Final Loan Modification Offer?

You did the hard work of applying for a loan modification and making your trial modification payments. Congratulations!

After making that last trial payment, the only thing to do is wait for the bank to send you a final modification offer, then you can finally put your foreclosure nightmare behind you forever and move on with life. Right?

Unfortunately, your permanent modification offer may not come right away. Why is that?

Applying For A Loan Modification

Applying for a loan modification is no easy task. You have to submit a package of documents called a Request for Mortgage Assistance or RMA. Often the servicer will require the homeowner to continually resubmit newer versions of the same documents such as bank statements while the application is under review.

[fa icon="clock-o"] Wednesday, March 6, 2019 [fa icon="user"] Jake Sterling [fa icon="folder-open'] loan modification, foreclosure, trial modification

Disclaimer: These results should not be taken as a guarantee, as each case is unique. We have helped over 7,000 homeowners. Here are some of their stories.

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 2/18/19

Disclaimer: These results should not be taken as a guarantee, as each case is unique. We have helped over 7,000 homeowners. Here are some of their stories.

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 2/11/19

Disclaimer: These results should not be taken as a guarantee, as each case is unique. We have helped over 7,000 homeowners. Here are some of their stories.

Freedom Mortgage

After falling $43,594.86 and 28 months past due on her mortgage, we helped our Freedom Mortgage client get a three month Ginnie Mae trial loan modification plan with a fresh start!

When Should You File Bankruptcy To Avoid Foreclosure?

Bankruptcy could help you delay foreclosure or avoid it entirely. So, if you're facing foreclosure, does that mean that you need to file bankruptcy? And if so, when?

There are ways to deal with your mortgage default that don't involve bankruptcy, some of which may be better. Whether or not bankruptcy is right for you depends on what other options are available to you and how close you are to losing your home.

If you've just defaulted, you probably have time to work toward a solution that doesn't involve bankruptcy. But if you've been served with foreclosure papers (in a judicial foreclosure state), have a sale date in the near future, and no other options, then bankruptcy could be right for you.

[fa icon="clock-o"] Saturday, February 9, 2019 [fa icon="user"] Maxwell Swinney [fa icon="folder-open'] loan modification, Bankruptcy, foreclosure

Foreclosure and Loan Modification Blog

Using Affirmative Defenses When Answering A Foreclosure Complaint

What Is An Affirmative Defense?

Preparing for Hurricane Dorian this Labor Day Weekend

Do You Want To Take Your Foreclosure Case To Trial?

The Worst Advice We've Heard About Loan Modifications and Foreclosure

"Stop paying your mortgage to get a loan mod"

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 3/4/19

What's Taking So Long For Your Final Loan Modification Offer?

Applying For A Loan Modification

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 2/25/19

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 2/18/19

Successful Loan Modification Roundup Week of 2/11/19

Freedom Mortgage

When Should You File Bankruptcy To Avoid Foreclosure?

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